Russia in WTO Good for US, US National Security Council Official Says

Russia in WTO Good for US, US National Security Council Official Says

Apr. 16 2011 - 12:18 am

The US will lobby to get its former arch rival, Russia, to join the World Trade Organization at some point this year, according to a gathering of Russian and US mid level officials at the Peterson Institute for International Affairs in Washington on Friday.

Michael A. McFaul, a Senior Director of Russian Affairs at the US National Security Council, delivered the keynote address. The conference was geared towards inform policymakers and the public of the prospects for Russia’s inclusion in the WTO later this year and what that would mean for the Russian economy, and US-Russian relations, Peterson said on its website.

Russia-US trade is small in comparison to US trade with the other big emerging markets. The two countries traded $28 billion worth of goods and services in 2008, which includes exports and imports. Brazil-US two-way trade was over $54 billion, India’s was $45 billion and China’s was $335 billion in two-way trade with the US, according to an April 15 power point presentation by Anders Aslund, a senior fellow at Peterson.

Russia is the only BRIC that is not a member of the World Trade Organization. The country’s been trying to get in since the mid-1990s.


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April 16, 2011, 5:26 p.m. EDT

Russia bids for foreign investment

By Kate Gibson, MarketWatch

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Russia is working to the quell the concerns of foreigners reluctant to invest in a country plagued by the perception of corruption, an government official said Saturday.

“Don’t be scared of Russia,” Stanislav Voskresensky, deputy minister of economic development, said of his message to private-equity funds and investment bankers.

Large U.S. corporations including PepsiCo Inc., Deere & Co., Alcoa Inc. and General Electric Co. all have a presence in Russia, he said in an interview, but the same cannot be said of large private-equity funds deterred by the country’s reputation for corruption and bureaucracy.

“The idea is to attract those types of clients who have not yet invested in Russia,” he said of a new venture called the Russian Direct-Investment Fund, which will invest in non-commodities-related projects in Russia, but outside Moscow, a city with an especially dicey reputation.

People incorrectly view Russia as solely a producer of natural gas and oil, without realizing its businesses involve other sectors, including aerospace, pharmaceutical and telecommunications, Voskresensky said.

To clean up its image and encourage foreign investment, Russia is moving to privatize its state-owned businesses, and plans to replace the board of natural-gas producer Gazprom OAO with independent directors by Oct. 1, he said.

The Russian official called the recent spike in crude oil unwelcome, even though it would generate additional revenue for the oil-producing state.

“We’re not happy with higher oil prices,” said Voskresenky, who noted that crude’s rise brings negative consequences such as the ruble’s appreciation and inflation, along with a possible mindset among Russians that they can rely on what is a volatile source of revenue.

Soliciting input from potential investors as to the information they need to be comfortable, the new rules of transparency will be detailed at an annual economic forum in St. Petersburg, Russia, June 16 through June 18, Voskresensky said.


Kate Gibson is a reporter for MarketWatch, based in New York.


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